Need to know
HM Passport Office has issued an alert to anyone applying for a new or replacement child passport in the UK
Children need a valid passport to travel abroad, just like adults do(Image: Images By Tang Ming Tung via Getty Images)
All you need to know as HM Passport Office issues alert over children’s passports:
- HM Passport Office has issued a new alert for parents applying for a new or replacement passport for a child.
- All children must hold their own passport to travel internationally – a rule that has been in place since October 1998. The sole issuer of UK passports shared the alert on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday.
- It stated: “A child’s application must be completed by a person with parental responsibility. You’ll also need to provide documentation to confirm this.”
- Parental responsibility is automatically granted to those who give birth to the child. Fathers or second female parents may also have automatic parental responsibility depending on their circumstances.
- For example, parental responsibility is also automatically granted if you are married to or in a civil partnership with the birth mother at the time of the child’s birth.
- Should the biological father wed or enter into a civil partnership with the child’s birth mother following the birth, he will automatically obtain parental responsibility.
- A standard child’s passport costs £66.50 online or £80 by paper form, rising to £80.50 or £94 for a 54-page frequent-traveller passport.
READ THE FULL STORY: HM Passport Office alert to anyone applying for a child